1. LOW TEMPERATURES IN SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY.

Cryogenics is defined as that branch of physics which deals with the production of
very low temperatures and their effect on matter [1], a formulation which addresses both
aspects of attaining low temperatures which do not naturally occur on Earth, and of using
them for the study of nature or the human industry. In a more operational way [2], it is
also defined as the science and technology of temperatures below 120 K. The reason for
this latter definition can be understood by examining characteristic temperatures of
cryogenic fluids (Table 1): the limit temperature of 120 K comprehensively includes the
normal boiling points of the main atmospheric gases, as well as of methane which
constitutes the principal component of natural gas. Today, liquid natural gas (LNG)
represents one of the largest – and fast-growing – industrial domains of application of
cryogenics (Figure 1), together with the liquefaction and separation of air gases (Figure
2). The densification by condensation, and separation by distillation of gases was
historically – and remains today - the main driving force for the cryogenic industry,
exemplified not only by liquid oxygen and nitrogen used in chemical and metallurgical
processes, but also by the cryogenic liquid propellants of rocket engines (Figure 3) and
the proposed use of hydrogen as a ―clean‖ energy vector in transportation (Figure 4).
Table 1
Characteristic temperatures of cryogenic fluids [K]

Cryogen Triple point Normal boiling Critical point

point
Methane 90.7 111.6 190.5
Oxygen 54.4 90.2 154.5
Argon 8338 87.3 150.9
Nitrogen 63.1 77.3 126.2
Neon 24.6 27.1 44.4
Hydrogen 13.8 20.4 33.2
Helium 2.2* 4.2 5.2

1
Figure 1 130 000 m3 LNG carrier Figure 2 Cryogenic air separation plant with
heat exchanger and distillation column towers(source Air Products)

a) Ariane 5 b) Space Shuttle

(25 t liquid hydrogen, 130 t liquid oxygen) (100 t liquid hydrogen, 600 t liquid
Figure 3 Rockets using cryogenic liquid propellants

Figure 4 Automotive liquid hydrogen fuel tank

2
The quest for low temperatures however finds its origin in early thermodynamics, with
Amontons’s gas pressure thermometer (1703) opening the way for the concept of absolute
zero inferred a century later by Charles and Gay-Lussac, and eventually formulated by
Kelvin. It is however with the advent of Boltzmann’s statistical thermodynamics in the
late nineteenth century that temperature – until then a phenomenological quantity - could
be explained in terms of microscopic structure and dynamics. Consider a thermodynamic
system in a macrostate which can be obtained by a multiplicity W of microstates. The
entropy S of the system was postulated by Boltzmann as
S = kB ln W (1)
with kB ≃ 1.38 10-23 J/K. This formula, which founded statistical thermodynamics, is
displayed on Boltzmann’s grave in Vienna (Figure 5).

Figure 5 L. Boltzmann’s grave in the Zentralfriedhof, Vienna, bearing the entropy

formula

Adding reversibly heat dQ to the system produces a change of its entropy dS, with a
proportionality factor T which is precisely temperature
T = (dQ / dS)
Thus a low-temperature system can be defined as one to which a minute addition of heat
produces a large change in entropy, i.e. a large change in its range of possible
microscopic configurations. Boltzmann also found that the average thermal energy of a
particle in a system in equilibrium at temperature T is
E ~ kB T (3)
Consequently, a temperature of 1 K is equivalent to a thermal energy of 10-4 eV or 10-23
J per particle. A temperature is therefore low for a given physical process when kB T is
small compared to the characteristic energy of the process considered. Cryogenic
3
temperatures thus reveal phenomena with low characteristic energy (Table 2), and enable
their application when significantly lower than the characteristic energy of the
phenomenon of interest. From Tables 1 and 2, it is clear that ―low temperature‖
superconductivity requires helium cryogenics: several examples of helium-cooled
superconducting devices are shown in Figure 6. Considering vapour pressures of gases at
low temperature (Figure 7), it is also clear that helium must be the working cryogen for
achieving ―clean‖vacuum with cryopumps.
Table 2
Characteristic temperatures of low-energy phenomena

Phenomenon Temperature [K]

Debye temperature of metals few 100
High-temperature superconductors ~ 100
Low-temperature superconductors ~ 10
Intrinsic transport properties of metals < 10
Cryo pumping Few
Cosmic microwave background 2.7
Super fluid helium 4 2.2
Bolometers for cosmic radiation <1
Low-density atomic Bose-Einstein ~ 10-6
condensates

2. CRYOGENIC FLUIDS
2.1 Thermo Physical Properties
The simplest way of cooling equipment with a cryogenic fluid is to make use of
its latent heat of vaporization, e.g. by immersion in a bath of boiling liquid. As a
consequence, the useful temperature range of cryogenic fluids is that in which there exists
latent heat of vaporization, i.e. between the triple point and the critical point, with a
particular interest in the normal boiling point, i.e. the saturation Temperature at
atmospheric pressure. This data is given in Table 1. In this introduction to cryogenics, we
will concentrate on two cryogens: helium which is the only liquid at very low

4
temperature, and nitrogen for its wide availability and ease of use for pre-cooling
equipment and for thermal shielding.

d)

Figure 6 Helium-cooled superconducting devices

a) Large Hadron Collider at CERN,
b) ) 5 MW HTS ship propulsion motor (AMS),
c) c) ITER experimental fusion reactor,
d) d) whole-body MRI system (Bruker)

5
 Figure 7 Vapour pressures of common gases at cryogenic temperature

To develop a feeling about properties of these cryogenic fluids, it is instructive to

compare them with those of water (Table 3). In both cases, but particularly with helium,
applications operate much closer to the critical point, i.e. in a domain where the difference
between the liquid and vapour phases is much less marked: the ratio of liquid to vapour
densities and the latent heat associated with the change of phase are much smaller. Due to
the low values of its critical pressure and temperature, helium can be used as a cryogenic
coolant beyond the critical point, in the supercritical state. It is also interesting to note
that, while liquid nitrogen resembles water as concerns density and viscosity, liquid
helium is much lighter and less viscous. This latter property makes it a medium of choice
for permeating small channels inside superconducting magnet windings and thus
stabilizing the superconductor.

6
 Table 3
Properties of helium and nitrogen compared to water

2.2 Liquid boil-off

The factor of ten in latent heat of vaporization between helium and nitrogen,
combined with the lower density of the former, induces a large difference in vaporization
rates under the same applied heat load (Table 4). This illustrates the need for
implementing much better insulation techniques in liquid helium vessels to achieve
comparable holding times.
Table 4
Vaporization of liquid helium and liquid nitrogen at normal boiling point under

1 W applied heat load

Boil-off measurements constitute a practical method for measuring the heat load of a
cryostat holding a saturated cryogen bath. In steady conditions, i.e. provided the liquid
level in the bath is maintained constant, the boil-off m vap precisely equals the vapor flow
m out escaping the cryostat, which can be warmed up to room temperature and measured
in a conventional gas flow-meter. At decreasing liquid level though, part of the vapor will
take the volume in the cryostat previously occupied by the liquid which has vaporized,

7
and the escaping flow will be lower than the boil-off. More precisely, if the boil-off vapor
is taken at saturation in equilibrium with the liquid

2.3 Cryogen usage for equipment cooldown

For both fluids, the sensible heat of the vapour over the temperature range from liquid
saturation to ambient is comparable to or larger than the latent heat of vaporization. This
provides a valuable cooling potential at intermediate temperature, which can be used for
thermal shielding or for precooling of equipment from room temperature. The heat
balance equation for cooling a mass of, say iron mFe of specific heat CFe(T) at
temperature T by vaporizing a mass dm of cryogenic liquid at saturation temperature Tv,
latent heat of vaporization Lv and vapour specific heat C (taken as constant), is assuming
perfect heat exchange with the liquid and the vapour

mFe CFe(T) dT = [Lv + C (T - Tv)] dm

Hence the specific liquid cryogen requirement for cool-down from temperature T0
The term C (T - Tv) adding to Lv in the denominator brings a strong attenuation to the specific
liquid requirement, provided there is good heat exchange between the solid and the escaping
vapor. Calculated values of specific liquid cryogen requirements for iron are given in Table 5,
clearly demonstrating the interest of recovering the sensible heat of helium vapor, as well as
that of pre cooling Equipment with liquid nitrogen.

The term C (T - Tv) adding to Lv in the denominator brings a strong attenuation to the
specific liquid requirement, provided there is good heat exchange between the solid and
the escaping vapor. Calculated values of specific liquid cryogen requirements for iron are
8
given in Table 5, clearly demonstrating the interest of recovering the sensible heat of
helium vapor, as well as that of pre-cooling equipment with liquid nitrogen.
Table 5
Volume [l] of liquid cryogens required to cool down 1 kg of iron

Using Latent heat only Latent heat and enthalpy of

vapor
Liquid helium from 290 K 29.5 0.75
to 4.2 K
Liquid helium from 77 K to 1.46 0.12
4.2 K
Liquid nitrogen from 290 K 0.45 0.29
to 77 K

2.4 Phase domains

Typical operating domains with cryogenic helium are shown in Figure 8, superimposed
on the – peculiar – phase diagram of the substance: the solid phase only exists under
pressure and the normal liquid He I undergoes below 2.2 K a transition to another liquid
phase, He II instead of solidifying. There is no latent heat associated with this phase
transition, but a peak in the specific heat, the shape of which gave the name ―-line‖ to
the phase boundary. He II exhibits super fluidity, a macroscopic quantum behavior
entailing very high thermal conductivity and very low viscosity. While operating in
saturated He I provides fixed (saturation) temperature and high boiling heat transfer at
moderate heat flux, it may develop instabilities in two-phase flow and is prone to boiling
crisis above the peak nucleate boiling flux (about 1 W/cm2). The use of mono-phase
supercritical helium in forced-flow systems avoids the problems of two-phase flow.
However, the strongly varying properties of the fluid in the vicinity of the critical point
may create other issues, such as density wave oscillations. More fundamentally,
supercritical helium exhibits no latent heat, so that applied heat loads result in
temperature increases which must be contained by high flow-rate or periodic re-cooling in
extended systems. At lower temperature, He II demonstrates excellent transport properties
which make it a coolant of choice for advanced superconducting devices [3]. Besides the
thermodynamic penalty of 8 lower temperatures, the use of He II imposes that at least part
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of the cryogenic circuits operate at sub atmospheric pressure, thus requiring efficient
compression of low-pressure vapor and creating risks of a dielectric breakdown and
contamination by air in-leaks. Thermo-physical properties of cryogenic fluids are
available from tables, graphs and software running on personal computers, a selection of
which is listed in the bibliography.

Figure 8 Phase diagram of helium, showing typical operating domains.

3. REAL CYCLE AND REFERIGARATION EQUIPMENT

So far we have only addressed cryogenic refrigeration and liquefaction through

thermodynamics, i.e. through the exchanges of mass, heat and work at the boundaries of
machines seen as ―black boxes‖. We will now consider cycles, cooling methods and
equipment of real refrigerators. In order to minimize the specific mechanical work
requirement (and hence the size and power consumption), an efficient refrigerator should
try and approximate the Carnot cycle, which is represented by a rectangle on the
temperature-entropy diagram: the two isotherms are horizontal lines, while the two
isentropic transforms are vertical lines. To liquefy helium, the base of the rectangle
10
should intercept the liquid-vapor dome (Figure 14). However, superimposing this cycle
on the temperature-entropy diagram of helium shows that one should operate at a high
pressure of about 613 kbar (!), with a first isentropic compression from 1.3 bar to 82 kbar
(!), followed by an isothermal compression. This is clearly impractical, and real helium
cycles are elongated along isobar (or isochoric) lines, thus involving transforms which
require heat exchange between the high- and low-pressure streams. This heat exchange
can be performed in recuperative or regenerative heat exchangers, respectively for
continuous or alternating flows. In the following, we focus on the continuous-flow cycles
using recuperative heat exchangers which constitute the operating principles of large-
capacity helium refrigerators and liquefiers.

Figure 14 A hypothetical Carnot cycle for helium liquefaction

Practical elementary cooling processes are shown on the temperature-entropy

diagram in Figure 15. The gas stream can first undergo quasi-isobar cooling in a counter-
flow heat exchanger (segment AB1): modern refrigerators make use of brazed aluminum
plate heat exchangers. Refrigeration can be produced by adiabatic (quasi-isentropic)
expansion with extraction of mechanical work (segment AB’2): the expansion engine is a
gas turbine, with the extracted power transmitted to a compressor wheel sharing a
common shaft and later dissipated in a brake circuit. A third process is isenthalpic Joule-
Thomson expansion, i.e. without extraction of mechanical work, in a valve or restriction
(segment AB3). Unfortunately, this latter process does not does work for ideal
gases, the enthalpy of which is a sole function of temperature. For real gases, however,
enthalpy depends both on temperature and pressure, so that isenthalpic expansion can
11
produce warming or cooling, depending upon the slope of the isenthalps on the diagram.
In order to cool the gas stream, Joule-Thomson expansion must start below a limit called
the inversion temperature. The values of inversion temperature for cryogenic fluids
(Table 10) show that while air can be cooled from room temperature by Joule-Thomson
expansion (the risk of freezing the pressure reducer on the air bottle is well known to
scuba divers), helium must first be pre-cooled down to below its inversion temperature of
43 K. The moderate downward slope of isenthalps on the temperature-entropy diagram
indicates that in any case, Joule- Thomson expansion generates substantial entropy. Its
relative inefficiency with respect to adiabatic expansion is however accepted in view of
the simplicity of its implementation, particularly when it results in partial condensation of
the stream entailing two-phase flow conditions which would be difficult to handle in an
expansion turbine.
Cryogen Maximum inversion temperature [K]

Helium 43
Hydrogen 202 202
Neon 260 260
Air 603 603
Nitrogen 623 623
Oxygen 761 761

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 These elementary cooling processes are combined in practical cycles, a common
example for helium refrigeration is provided by the Claude cycle and its refinements. A
schematic two-pressure, two-stage Claude cycle is shown in Figure 15: gaseous helium,
compressed to HP in a lubricated screw compressor, is re-cooled to room temperature in
water-coolers, dried and purified from oil aerosols down to the ppm level, before being
sent to the HP side of the heat exchange line where it is refrigerated by heat exchange
with the counter-flow of cold gas returning on the LP side. Part of the flow is tapped from
the HP line and expanded in the turbines before escaping to the LP line. At the bottom of
the heat exchange line, the remaining HP flow is expanded in a Joule-Thomson valve and
partially liquefied.
Large-capacity helium refrigerators and liquefiers operate under this principle,
however with many refinements aiming at meeting specific cooling duties and improving
efficiency and flexibility of operation, such as three- and sometimes four-pressure cycles,
liquid nitrogen pre-cooling of the helium stream, numerous heat exchangers, many
turbines in series or parallel arrangements, Joule-Thomson expansion replaced by
adiabatic expansion in a ―wet‖ turbine, cold compressors to lower the refrigeration

13
temperature below 4.5 K. A view of such a large plant appears in. The capital cost of
these complex machines is high, but scales less than linearly with refrigeration power,
which favors large units. Operating costs are dominated by that of electrical energy,
typically amounting to about ten percent of the capital cost per year in case of quasi
continuous operation. For overall economy, it is therefore very important to seek high
efficiency, which is also easier to achieve on large units. For a review of these aspects,
see reference [6].

Figure 15 Schematic example of two-pressure, two-stage Claude cycle: T-S diagram (left)
and flow scheme (right)

4. DEVELOPMENT IN CRYOGENICS.
 Pioneering work in low-temperature Physics by the British chemists Sir
Humphrey Davy and Michael Faraday, between 1823 and 1845, prepared the way
for the development of cryogenics. Davy and Faraday generated gases by heating
an appropriate mixture at one end of a sealed tube shaped like an inverted V. The
other end was chilled in a salt-ice mixture. The combination of reduced
temperature and increased pressure caused the evolved gas to liquefy. When the
tube was opened, the liquid evaporated rapidly and cooled to its normal boiling
14
 point. By evaporating solid carbon dioxide mixed with ether, at low pressure,
Faraday finally succeeded in reaching a temperature of about 163 K (about -
110°C/-166°F).
 The temperature of a gas that is allowed to expand can increase or decrease
depending on the initial temperature of the gas. The special temperature at which a
particular gas will cool down instead of heat up when it expands is called the
inversion temperature. If a gas initially at a moderate temperature is expanded
through a valve, its temperature increases. But if its initial temperature is below
the inversion temperature, the expansion will cause a temperature reduction as the
result of what is called the Joule-Thomson effect.
 The person considered by most to be the originator of modern experimental
science, Francis Bacon, died as a result of a spontaneous experiment he was
conducting on the effects of low temperatures. In 1623, while traveling on a cold
and snowy day, Bacon decided to .experiment. to see whether snow would delay
the purifications of flesh. He stuffed a fowl to know its effects. In ,the process, he
caught a sudden chill. Over the years, this turned into acute bronchitis, which
contributed to his death in 1626.well.from there it started.
 Sir Humphry Davy and Michael Faraday carried out pioneering work in low
temperature physics between 1823 and 1845. They used an inverted V-tube, one
end of which was chilled in a salt ice mixture and the other end had appropriate
mixture for generating required gases. Due to lower temperature and high
pressure, the gas liquefies and when released, succeeds giving temperatures as low
as 163K(that is .110*C or-166*F)
 French physicist Louis Paul Callitet and the Swiss scientist Raoul Pierre Pictet,
using the cascading of Joule Thompson effect, were able in 1877 to produce
droplets of liquid oxygen; which thereby marked the end of the idea of permanent
gases.
 Dutch physicist Heike Kamerlingh Onnes set up the first liquid air plant in 1894,
using the cascade principle. The British chemist James Dewar liquefied hydrogen
in 1898 and Kamerlingh Onnes liquefied Helium, the most difficult of gases to
liquefy, in 1908.the work of Soviet physicist Peter Leonidovich Kapitza and
American mechanical engineer Samuel Collins has been noteworthy.

15
  The next Japanese infrared space telescope SPICA features a large 3.5-m-diameter
primary mirror and an optical bench cooled to 4.5 K with advanced mechanical
cryocoolers and effective radiant cooling instead of using a massive and short-
lived cryogen system. To obtain a sufficient thermal design margin for the
cryogenic system, cryocoolers for 20 K, 4 K, and 1 K have been modified for
higher reliability and higher cooling power. The latest results show that all
mechanical cryocoolers achieve sufficient cooling capacity for the cooling
requirement of the telescope and detectors on the optical bench at the beginning of
life.[4]

5. CRYOGENIC TECHNOLOGIES

The evaporation of liquid helium at reduced pressures produces temperatures as

low as 0.7 K (-272.44°C/-458.4°F). Still-lower temperatures can be attained by adiabatic
demagnetization. This procedure requires that a magnetic field be established around a
paramagnetic substance, that is, a substance made of paramagnetic ions, while the
substance is cooled in liquid helium. The field aligns the ionic magnets and later, when
the field is removed, the tiny magnets resume their random alignments, reducing the
thermal energy of the whole sample in the process. The temperature, therefore, falls to
levels as low as 0.002 K (-273.15°C/-459.67°F). Similar alignments of atomic nuclei that
have periods of magnetization followed by removal of the magnetic field have produced
temperatures close to 0.00001 K.

To reach temperatures closer to absolute zero, techniques using magnetic fields,

lasers, and radio waves can be used. In one approach, gases of atoms are confined by
a magnetic field. Multiple laser beams are used to cool the atoms in the gas by first
exciting the electrons, which then emit photons that carry energy away from the atoms.
After the gas has been placed in a much stronger magnetic trap, radio waves can then be
used to selectively remove the highest-energy atoms, leaving only atoms at the lowest
energy state. Another technique is to trap atoms or molecules in a ―box‖ of laser light.
Two additional lasers can be used to create an optical wall that confines the atoms or
molecules on one side of the laser light box. The space that holds the atoms and

16
molecules can be expanded and contracted with the lasers, lowering the temperature with
no addition of heat.

Different types of cryogenic refrigeration devices (commonly called cryocoolers)

have been developed for use in industry, in military and space technology, and in
scientific research. Most of these devices use the expansion of gases or fluids to draw
away heat. Among the most widely used cryocoolers are Stirling cryocoolers, which work
with the aid of a compressor. However, moving mechanical parts can cause vibrations
and wear. Another design called a pulse tube cryocooler eliminates most moving parts
that cause friction and wear, and uses acoustic power in an oscillating gas system.
Research is under way to develop more efficient and compact pulse tube cryocoolers. For
storing liquids at cryogenic temperatures, Dewar flasks have proved useful. Such vessels
consist of two flasks, one within the other, separated by an evacuated space. The outside
of the inner flask and the inside of the outer flask are both silvered to prevent radiant heat
from passing across the vacuum. Substances colder than liquid air cannot be handled in
open Dewar flasks because air would condense in the sample or form a solid plug to
prevent escape of released vapors; the accumulated vapors would eventually rupture the
container. Devices used to maintain substances or objects at cryogenic temperatures are
call cryostats.

Measurement of temperatures in the cryogenic range presents problems. One

procedure is to measure the pressure of a known quantity of hydrogen or helium, but this
procedure fails at the lowest temperatures. The vapor pressure of helium-4, that is, helium
of atomic mass 4, or of helium-3 (atomic mass 3) supplements the preceding method.
Determinations of the electrical resistance of metals or semiconductors and their magnetic
measurements extend the range still further. Available devices include cryogenic
thermometers that use semiconductor film materials and diode temperature micro
sensors.[4]

6. CHANGE IN CRYOGENIC PROPERTIES AT CRYOGENIC

TEMPERATURE

At cryogenic temperatures many materials behave in ways unfamiliar under

ordinary conditions. Mercury solidifies and rubber becomes as brittle as glass. The
17
specific heats of gases and solids decrease in a way that confirms the predictions
of quantum theory.

The electrical resistance of many, but not all, metals, metalloids, and some metal
alloys decreases abruptly to zero at temperatures below 23 K, a property
called superconductivity. If an electric current is introduced into a ring of metal that has
been cooled to the superconductive state, it will continue to travel around the ring and
may be detected hours later. Since the discovery of the first so-called high-temperature
superconductor in 1986, researchers have identified a number of ceramic compounds
containing copper-oxide that become superconducting at temperatures as high as 125 K.
The ability of a superconductive material to retain current has led to experiments for
constructing computer memory modules that would operate at these low temperatures.

The behavior of helium at low temperatures is remarkable in a number of ways.

The two stable isotopes of helium, helium-4 (2 protons + 2 neutrons) and helium-3 (2
protons + 1 neutron), show unusual properties at different temperatures. Both isotopes
remain liquid even after the most extreme cooling. To solidify helium-4 it is necessary to
subject the liquid to a pressure in excess of 25 atmospheres. Liquid helium-4 changes,
furthermore, to a super fluid state at temperatures below 2.18 K (-270.97°C/-455.75°F).
In this state its viscosity appears to be nearly zero. It forms thick films on the surface of
the containers, and helium flows through the film without resistance. Theory still fails to
account fully for this behavior. Helium-3 does not exhibit super fluidity unless its
temperature is reduced even further, to less than 0.00093 K (-273.15°C/-459.67°F).

One of the most dramatic achievements in cryogenic research has been the
creation of Bose-Einstein condensates. When a gas of atoms that are composite
bosons (atoms with even numbers of protons and neutrons in the nucleus) is confined in a
magnetic field and cooled to extremely low temperatures using lasers and radio waves,
some of the atoms in the gas can take on the same quantum state and behave together like
a single giant particle. This special state of matter was predicted by the physicists Albert
Einstein and S. N. Bose. Researchers have also created a related low-temperature
quantum phenomenon call a fermionic condensate. Atoms in a gas that are
composite fermions (atoms with an odd number of protons and neutrons in the nucleus)

18
form pairs and behave like bosons. Like the atoms in a Bose-Einstein condensate, the
atoms in a fermionic condensate can then ―condense‖ into the same quantum state.[5]

7. APPLICATION IN CRYOGENICS

Among the many important industrial applications of cryogenics are the large-
scale production of oxygen and nitrogen from air. The oxygen can be used in a variety of
ways, for example, in rocket engines, for cutting and welding torches, for supporting life
in space and deep-sea vehicles, and for blast furnace operations. The nitrogen goes into
the making of ammonia for fertilizers, and it is used to prepare frozen foods by cooling
them rapidly enough to prevent destruction of cell tissues. It can also serve as
a refrigerant and for transporting frozen foods.

Cryogenics has also made possible the commercial transportation of liquefied

natural gas. Without cryogenics, nuclear research would lack liquid hydrogen and helium
for use in particle detectors and for the powerful electromagnets needed in large particle
accelerators. Such magnets are also being used in nuclear fusion research. Infrared
devices, masers, and lasers can employ cryogenic temperatures, as well. Cryogenic
cooling is often used in space telescopes that observe objects in infrared
and microwave wavelengths. More efficient and compact cryocoolers allow cryogenic
temperatures to be used in an increasing variety of military, medical, scientific, civilian,
and commercial applications, including infrared sensors, superconducting electronics,
and magnetic levitation trains.

Bose-Einstein condensates and fermionic condensates are useful for scientific

research into quantum phenomena such as super fluidity and superconductivity. Such
unusual states of matter may also lead to quantum computing and devices such as atomic
lasers. Chemical reactions and other properties of molecules can also be studied at
cryogenic temperatures.

Cryogenic temperatures are also used in cryobiology—the study of life and life
processes at very low temperatures. Cryobiology includes cold temperatures used in

19
medicine and surgery, as well as the cryogenic preservation of biological and medical
materials.

One of the important uses of cryogenics is cryogenic fuels. cryogenic fuels,

mainly oxygen and hydrogen, has been used as rocket fuels. For example ,NASA’s Work
Horse. space shuttle uses cryogenic oxygen and hydrogen fuels as its primary means of
getting into orbit, as did al of the rockets built for the Soviet .s space program by Sergei
Korolev.

Rocket fuels or rocket propellants are a mixture of fuel and oxidizer. Basing on
the state, propellants are divided into three types:
A. Solid propellants:
These are the simplest of propellants. They have both fuel and
oxidizer in solid form. These have a variety of uses. The Titan,
Delta and Space Shuttle launch vehicles use strap-on solid
propellant rockets to provide added thrust to rockets.
B. Liquid propellants:
In such, fuel and oxidizer are stored in separate tanks and fed
through a system of pipes, valves and turbo pumps to a combustion
chamber where they are combined and burned to produce thrust.
These are more complex than solid propellants but can be
controlled better. NASA’s I stage Saturn 1-B and Saturn V,
Atlas/Centaur launch vehicles and few others have used these
propellants.
C. Hybrid propellants: These make use of both solid and liquid
propellants (generally solid fuel and liquid oxidizer) for
combustion. These are very complex and engines supporting these
are very rarely built.
Industrial Applications: Cryogenic treatment renders stronger and more wear
resistant metal. Cryogenic treatment works on reamers (both carbide or HSS), tool bits,
tool punches, carbide drills, carbide cutters, milling cutters, files, shaping equipments,
scissors, razors, clippers, knives, band saw blades, saw blades, reciprocating blades, Saber
saw, form tooling cutting tools and dies.

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 Increase your automobile’s life: How much is the average engine life of an
automobile, Say 18 yrs.20.25 years? Would u like to make it to about 90 years? Imagine a
racer and crew who would normally tear down their engine after every race or two,
suddenly discovering a process that would allow them safely go up to 30 races or more
without any major rebuild. Yes, this is verily possible by cryogenic treatment of
automotive parts. This can be achieved by deep cryogenic tempering of the engine parts.
Super Conductivity: Almost total lack of electrical resistance is observed in
certain materials when they are cooled to a temperature near absolute zero. Super
conducting materials allow low power dissipation, high speed operation, and high
sensitivity. When an electric current is passed in a super conducting metal ring, the
current may travel for hours without being detected. These super conductors also have the
ability to prevent external magnetic fields from penetrating their interiors and are perfect
diamagnetism. This property was first discovered in 1911 by Kamerlingh Onnes in
mercury. Since then they have found its application in medical imaging, magnetic energy
storage systems, motor generator, transformers, computer components and sensitive
magnetic field Measuring devices.
Industrial Applications: Cryogenic treatment renders stronger and more wear
resistant metal.cryogenic treatment works on reamers (both carbide or HSS), tool bits,
tool punches, carbide drills, carbide cutters, milling cutters, files, shaping equipments,
scissors, razors, clippers, knives, band saw baldes, saw blades, reciprocating blades, Saber
saw, form tooling cutting tools and dies.[6]

8. CASE STUDY

DEVELOPMENT OF CRYOGENIC FUEL AIRCRAFT

In mid-1970-s of previous century energy strategic dominated in the USSR

according to which all atomic energy was supposed to be utilized first while oil and gas
should have been considered of minor importance in view of small resources as they
erroneously believed at that time. Realization of Hydrogen Energy Program started.
Tupolev’s specialists were involved in the Program. As it used to happen many times in
the background of our company – Alexey Tupolev took a courageous decision - to build

21
―Hydrogen‖ aircraft. Such aircraft was built and successfully tested without any serious
incidents. It was preceded by a long-term Program of bench and ground tests intended for
testing functioning of new systems (such systems were more than 30 on the aircraft) and
mainly for providing safe operation. Unfortunately mentioned above energy strategy
turned to be not very correct.

Atomic energy has not become dominating. It was natural gas that turned to be of
paramount importance in the Energetic Program of our country. The content of natural
gas exceeds 50% of energy balance. That’s why our flying laboratory having status of
experimental TU-155 a/c was modified to use not only liquid hydrogen but also to use
Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG). This is how the first in the world Cryogenic Aircraft was
built. Remarkable properties of liquid hydrogen as aviation fuel and first of all its high
ecological cleanliness, high heat of combustion and high cooling capacity attracted
attention of aviation specialists to this type of fuel. Liquid hydrogen allows to improve
aircraft performance significantly, to build aircraft operating at speeds of M>6. Therefore
our activities on liquid hydrogen served as a scientific and technological work done
which will be used in near-term outlook. However extremely high price of liquid
hydrogen makes its commercial use impossible for a long time. If to speak about near
future tomorrow task is to introduce LNG as aviation fuel which was reflected in

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―Program on development of Russian civil aviation for the period from 2002 to 2010 and
for the period till 2015‖.

Oil shortage is growing. During previous 25 years specific weight of oil in worlds energy
balance decreased by more than 10% .Currently price of kerosene is 8000 rubles per tone,
LNG price is 3000 rubles per ton. Benefit makes 5000 rubles per each tone of replaced
kerosene. The benefit is likely to grow constantly according to opinion of many
specialists. Recently some special scientific ―explosion‖ happened in the world and
especially in Russia that provoked a vision that traditional and non-traditional resources
of natural gas can be increased by an order magnitude greater and exceed total amount of
traditional fossil fuel on earth. Natural gas is supplied to substantially each airfield via
pipelines i.e. transportation issues have been practically solved now. Its high energy
capacity, huge cooling capacity makes it possible to build aircraft with significantly high
performance in comparison with aircraft using kerosene. Fuel efficiency of flight using
LNG can make 10 g/pass, km. When using LNG potential emission of toxic agents will
be decreased as follows: carbon monoxide – 1 – 10 times, hydrocarbons – 2.5 – 3 times,
nitrogen oxides – 1.5 – 2 times, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons including benzapyrene
– 10 times Tupolev‖ PSC elaborated Cryogenic Aircraft Manufacturing Program. On the
first phase of this Program TU-156 a/c was built. Cargo-passenger TU-156 a/c was

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designed for optimization of airborne cryogenic fuel system during long-term operation
and its certification and also for optimization of ground infra-structure. Cryogenic
components of the aircraft will be installed on consequent serial Tupolev’s cryogenic
aircraft. The aircraft uses two fuels: aviation kerosene and liquefied natural gas which
makes it possible to operate the aircraft from usual airfields and from airfields provided
with LNG fueling systems. Use of two fuels improves flight safety level significantly.
TU-156 a/c is capable to carry 14 t of payload for distance 2600 km using LNG and for
distance of 3300 km using LNG and kerosene. In rear portion of passenger cabin there is
a ventilated compartment to receive a main cryogenic tank of 13 t capacity. Nose baggage
compartment is provided with ventilated bay wherein trim cryogenic fuel tank is installed
composed of two horizontal communicating vessels capable to receive 3.8 tonesof
LNG.[7]

9. FUTURE OF CRYOGENICS

Though a lot of work and research has been done in the field of cryogenics a lot,
more is needed to be done. The inherent disadvantage of cryogenic process is the heavy
cost which needs to be incurred in the equipment and the costs of the process itself.
Future use of superconductivity system is proposed for high speed rail transport. If
research in this field is successful it will be revolutionize the land transport systems.
Another field where cryogenics can play a vital role is that of automobile field. With the
increasing cost of hydrocarbons and the possibility that their reserves may soon be
exhausted hydrogen presence an excellent alternative from all consideration including the
fact that it does not produce any pollution on combustion.

If hydrogen becomes the fuel of the future it will have to be store in the liquid
state thus giving cryogenics an undreamed future. Also the application in medicine and
biology will have far reaching effects on the society. The use of artificial insemination in
cattle is made possible by cryogenics which is beyond doubt a boon to the villagers in our
country helping them become stronger socially and economically. A similar technology to
freeze the human sperms and able to thaw it successfully after maintaining it in the frozen
condition for many years is possible with cryogenics.

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10. CONLUSION

Cryogenics hence is a branch of science dealing with extremely low

temperatures and treatment of materials at such temperatures. Cryogenics can be applied
to almost everywhere in every field. It finds its application in military, tooling industry,
agricultural industry, aerospace, medical, recycling, household, automobile industry,
cryogenics is found to improve the grain structure of everything treated be it metal or
plastic or coils or engines or musical instruments or fiber.

Cryogenics has helped the field of science by helping produce liquefied

hydrogen and helium for various important researches and inventions. it helped the
aerospace industry by helping gather numerous helpful data about outer space accurately.
Cryogenics has also been helpful to biologists trying to find solutions to storage and
treatment of organisms.

In spite of all these achievements and advances, Cryogenics promises to be

a field with lots of scope of improvement. As the temperature lowers further towards
absolute zero, newer discoveries are bound to emerge. This field could be put to many
other applications in various fields. Its reaches in the mentioned industries hold a good
chance of extension.

Hence Cryogenics proves to be very promising for the future in this world
of materials.

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11. REFERENCES

(1) Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd edition, Oxford University Press (1989).
(2) New International Dictionary of Refrigeration, 3rd edition, IIR-IIF Paris (1975).
(3) Ph. Lebrun & L. Tavian, The technology of super fluid helium, CERN-2004-008,
Geneva (2004) 375.
(4) http://encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_761563758_1/Cryogenics.html
(5) http://encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_761563758_2/Cryogenics.html
(6) S. Claudet et al., Economics of large helium cryogenic systems: experience from
recent Projects at CERN, Adv. Cryo. Eng. 45B (2000) 1301.
(7) http://www.tupolev.ru/English.pdf
(8) http://pdf-searchengine.com/
(9) http://scribd.com/engineering/cryogenic.html

(10) http://www.cryogenicsindia.com/

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 ACKNOWLEDGMENT

I Avail this opportunity to thank all those people who helped me in

making this seminar report a success.

I would especially like to extend my grateful thanks to Prof.

M.S.Sadare (seminar guide), who helped and enlightened me in every
possible way. I am indebted to him for bringing order to this report out of the
chaos that was many times presented to him.

I would like to express my respect, deep gratitude and regards to Prof

A.K.MISHRA (H.O.D. Mechanical Department) for his support.

GODSE MILIND SURESH

[TE MECHANICAL]

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